


Never Forgotten

by Camila_Winchester



Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Ending, Angst, Artie can walk, F/M, Finchel - Freeform, Future Fic, Happy Ending, Heaven, I think this is all, but its a finchel fanfic, emotional fic, mentions of Klaine, not sad death, rachel and Jesse have kids, two shot fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-14
Updated: 2015-08-14
Packaged: 2018-04-14 17:47:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4573929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Camila_Winchester/pseuds/Camila_Winchester
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As time passes, Rachel reflects on her past, and what should have been.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This one is for you, Cory. Because the end wasn't right. And neither was yours.

Rachel poured herself a large cup of coffee. She closed her eyes, savoring the hot liquid as it touched her lips in that cold New York morning. The children were probably coming over later today.

" _Children"_ A smile crossed her lips. _Robert and Barbra were anything but kids at this point_. Her son even got engaged, as recently as last month. But then again, to a mother, her children were always going to be "children".

Jesse had yet to return from his early shopping run. She told him last night she'd send one of the maids to do that, but he insisted. Quite a stubborn man he was. Barbra had got that from him. Maybe that's why she went off to law college not that long ago. So ambitious, that one. And beautiful too. _Hmm_. _Okay,_ maybe she got it from her.

 _"Life with him had been really great so far"_ she thought. After saying goodbye to her friends in Lima one last time in their graduation, they both moved to Los Angeles, where she made quite a name for herself, and earned several awards.

Her eyes wandered to the shelf across the room. They were the first thing you saw as you entered their apartment. She didn't want them there at first, but Jesse ended up convincing her. According to him, they were there to " _show everyone how talented she was_ ".

Of course, though Los Angeles was beautiful and the endless movies and TV shows really touched her heart, not to mention the birth place of her son, she decided to move back to New York, hoping to fulfill her long lost brodway dreams. She was fairly famous here too; and her friends were always close. She even got to star on "Wicked" with Kurt once or twice. And Jesse was not behind either; he founded an artistic school, and St. James' Academy of Arts grew to be as famous and known as NYADA. _Or so they both liked to think._

After these twenty years together, it was safe to say she had everything she wanted. _Well..._ Her hand rested absently under her rib. She got up pretty quickly, and poured her almost untouched coffee down the sink. It was probably best if she took her shower and got ready. He would probably arrive soon.

He had been so good to her all these years. Never really could deny her a thing, and always made sure to remind her how beautiful she was, and comfort her when it was all too much. He was a gentleman, like one of those you see in the movies and in fairytales. He even made sure to hold the car door open for her when they went out and he was driving. _What else could she ask for?_

The warm water of the bathtub relaxed her sore muscles and she sighed softly. _As if she didn't know the answer to that question_ , no matter how hard she tried to deny it.

It wasn't as if she never loved Jesse. She did. It had been all so wonderful and beautiful all those years back, when she was just young, and time had yet to reach her skin. It _still_ was. She was just never able to forget a few things

_...Like the soft touch of his lips across her skin..._

She sat up startled, looking around, as if being careful to see if anyone could have heard her thoughts, before applying some soap on the sponge, and rubbing it softly against her skin.

_....The way he held her on his arms..._

_... The way their voices matched perfectly when they sung..._

_... the way their noses brushed against each other when they kissed..._

_And the way he smiled when their lips parted._ A soft, kind, and genuine smile. The same one he wore when they won a choiring competition, or on those rare days, so painfully rare, when nothing was wrong and they and their friends could just sing in the glee club, without a care in the world. And his voice. _Oh, she had been worried for so long that she would forget it with time_ , even _wanted_ to, at times when it all was too much to handle, but she never did. His beautiful voice, softer than Jesse's, and at times, more out of tune, but perfect in every way, regardless.

She could no longer deny it to herself. She missed him, the same way she loved him. With every part of herself, and infinitely more than she would ever love any other man in her life.

But Finn was gone. Had been for such a long time now, burried along with her wild dreams of becoming a star, and heading back to Lima to meet him once again, lay on his loving arms, and never leave him again. Like he promised her she would, when she left to New York for the very first time. Now she wishes she hadn't.

Jesse's slow, heavy steps, as if he was carrying something heavy started echoing through the apartment by the time two tear tracks covered her cheeks.

"Rach? I'm home!" His strong, excited voice, probably eager to tell her about new students that did audition to join his class reached her ears.

She wiped away the tears from her face and finished cleaning herself up, getting out of the bathtub and wrapping a towel around herself.

"Just a second, honey!" She called back to him, and her voice didn't shake. Not even once. As if nothing had even happened.

She walked out of the bathroom into the bedroom they shared, the clothes she had picked out before breakfast already spread out in the bed for her. And from the kitchen, the smell of roasted potatoes gently making her empty stomach groan as their personal chef started preparing their lunch under Jesse's orders.

Rachel wasn't religious by any means. She had been raised Jewish, but that part of her was yet another one of the things that Finn took with him.

Still, if there actually was a god out there, they simply would _have_ to meet again one day. She wanted that. _Needed_ that. And if fate wouldn't have it, and broke them apart again, that he at least let them be together for a few minutes first. Just so she could see his beautiful smile and feel safe in his arms as she told him she loved him. _Just one last time._

By the time she finished dressing up, a smile was plastered on her lips.  _No, they wouldn't be broken apart again_. She somehow knew, deep in her heart. When they met again, it would be _forever_.

And when the kids did arrive, and Jesse called out for her once more, she raised her shirt just a bit, allowing herself to look at the small tattoo with his name on it. A promise that she was his, always, before heading out of the room, excited to hear whatever news her family had for her.


	2. Chapter 2

Death didn't scare her. It was a part of life, as natural as celebrating a birthday. And her life had been fairly good, quite peaceful in the end. Surrounded by her friends and family, that's how she left us, in a hospital bed in Lima, Ohio.

That being said, it was of no surprise to her, that when she once again opened her eyes, she was standing right in front of William McKinley High School, and looking exactly like her teenage self.

Smiling incredibly wide, she walked through the corridors, crowded with familiar faces that she couldn't name, as they got ready for class. Rachel soon found herself standing in front of the choir room.

A feeling of being home filled her, and she opened the door, only to find it completely empty. The world seemed to turn still for a second, before she heard familiar voices coming not so far away, humming a song in the auditorium.

She ran impossibly fast through the old path, and it wasn't until she walked inside, her eyes scanning all the empty chairs, finding Mr Shue and Emma sitting on the first roll, not really until they laid on the stage, where Tina, Britanny, Blaine and Artie were standing, that she realized what they were singing.

_Just a small town girl, living in a lonely world..._

_she took the midnight train going anywhere..._

And in the middle of them, wearing a red t shirt and jeans, there he stood, looking exactly like he had the last time she saw him.

He hadn't spotted her yet, looking completely focused on singing the song. A single tear fell down her cheek, as she started walking towards him.

_Just a city boy, born and raised in south Detroit..._

_He took the midnight train going anywhere..._

He noticed her now, they all did. The song stopped for a few seconds as they all stared at her in shock, but she didn't notice or care. His wide brown eyes were all she could see. She could swear she saw his eyes get glassy for a second, before he flashed her the smile she had waited for so long to see.

_A singer in a smoky room..._

_The smell of wine and cheap perfume..._

Their voices completed each other now, like they always had. Like it should have always been.

_For a smile they can share the night,_

_it goes on and on and on and on..._

She finished making her way to the stage, and Finn held out his hand, that she eagerly took, feeling his warmth once again. He pulled her up, not even daring to let go.

_Strangers, waiting,_

_up and down the boulevard,_

_their shadows, searching,_

_somewhere in the night..._

He led her to her friends, and they all hugged her impossibly tight. Even Artie got up from the wheelchair, leaving only his red guitar there. She wondered if she would ever stop crying.

_Streetlight, people_

_living just to find emotion_

_hiding, somewhere in the night..._

Once they let her go, she quickly went back to Finn, and hugged him tight. He returned it, just as desperately. It had been too long.

_Working hard, to get my fill_

_Everybody wants a thrill..._

She kept singing, knowing she wouldn't be able to stop, even if she wanted to. His tears were falling freely now as well, like they had the first day he got here and realized what happened. How afraid he was to be all alone, afraid he lost her, forever.

_Payin anything to roll the dice,_

_just one more time..._

But he wasn't all alone anymore, now his friends were here. And he hadn't lost her, like he thought he would when Mr Shue came, and told him everything about how she was with Jesse, had children, a life with him. He thought she'd choose him. That when it was all said and done, she'd be with him. But she hadn't. _She hadn't._

_Some will win, some will lose_

_some will only sing the blues..._

His nails were biting into her skin as he held her incredibly tight, but she felt no pain. She held him back, just as intensely. She had been right, all this time. He was here. _He was here._

_And now the movie never ends,_

_it goes on and on and on..._

They reluctantly let go of each other, and she wiped away his tears. Their eyes never left each other though, as they danced back and forth on stage, too afraid to stop looking and find out it was all just a dream.

_Don't stop believing_

_Hold on to that feeling..._

Rachel hadn't felt this well in a very long time. She thought home was being here, in the school, in the choir room with her friends, but it wasn't. He was her home.

_Streetlight, people..._

_Don't stop!_

The song didn't take too long to end after that, and as soon as it did, she ran back into his arms and they kissed, a passionate and intense kiss, like you only see once or twice in life. All of their friends were cheering them on when they broke apart, like they had witnessed the most beautiful thing in the world. And they were probably right.

                                                                                        xx

The rest of that day was spent talking to and enjoying her friends. Rachel made sure to tell Blaine how much Kurt loved and missed him in these last five years. Blaine watched amazed, as she told him how their adopted children had grown into doctors and professional singers. She then spent a good time comforting him, assuring him Kurt would be join them when it was his time.

She made sure to watch amazed, as Artie and Britanny tried to teach Tina and Finn dance moves, Artie stealing kisses from Tina every now and again. Rachel laughed especially hard when Finn tried to perform a specially hard flip, and landed on his ass.

To Mr Shue and Emma, she made sure to tell everything about Dany's engagement to a lovely african American woman named Kali. Their eyes shone with pride even harder as she told them how the glee club he coached had won the regionals' championship.

And when they all got tired of listening, and each decided to go their own way and call it a night, Finn guided her through the school, remembering their best moments.

They made sure to stop by Sue's office to say hi, before getting kicked out with the usual threat of getting slushied in the face, and heading back to the now empty auditorium.

She wondered if she should tell him they named the place after him after his passing, but forgot about it, as on the stage now laid a small picnic basket and a towel. _Just like on their first date._

"I wanted to make your first day here special" he shrugged, blushing when she wouldn't move her eyes away from him.

She smiled, sitting on the towel, and patting it for him to sit next to her.

"It's perfect, Finn. I love it" she assured him, laughing when he left the breath he didn't know he was holding out. He smiled back.

"I love you, Rachel Berry"

"And I love you, Finn Hudson"

They kissed again, much softer this time, but it was just as passionate. Forever bloomed ahead of them, with the promise nothing could ever break them apart again. And to Rachel, that was perfectly fine.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments/critics/Kudos appreciated. Have a great day :)


End file.
